U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron, leaving Downing Street in London Tuesday, is setting a risky political path.

LONDONPrime Minister David Cameron plans to let the British people vote on whether or not to stay in the European Union, a surprise move critics say will inhibit trade and cast a new shadow over the troubled bloc. More

Chief Defends Bank of England's Record

Mr. Cameron planned to say in a public address that, if elected in 2015, a Conservative government would renegotiate the U.K.'s relationship with the EU, and then hold a referendum on the new settlement in the first half of its five-year parliamentary term.

Such a referendum would mark the first time in recent years that an EU member has offered its citizens such a vote.

His pledge, set to be delivered Wednesday morning in London, will likely prove unsettling for one of the world's largest trading blocs as members of the EU have been struggling to deal with a debt crisis.

While many people had focused on the risk of Greece leaving the euro zone, the promise of a referendum by Mr. Cameron would raise the prospect of an exit from the EU by one of the bloc's biggest economies and a key financial center. While the U.K. is part of the EU, it doesn't use the euro currency.

He's not going to give them the option to decide in or out. What he WILL give them the option is to decide whether they like his proposed "new relationship" or not

Britain is heading for a mistake in choosing to have a "Norway-style" relationship with the EU - Norway has no representation in the EU parliament yet must follow its directives in return for getting access to the common market. Norway relies in the UK to push it's (Norway's) opinion in the EU

The fact is that the UK and the various continental economies are tightly tied

If the UK breaks completely away from the open market, instantly a lot of business would leave London -- it works as the financial hub for much of Europe (to Paris' chagrin) and without the access to the single market, this will move to Frankfurt or Paris CDG. Consider this as similar to Hong Kong providing privileged access to the China market

This would be a bad idea for England if they left the European Union. As long as the EU sticks to lifting trade barriers and travel restrictions within it’s member countries, it’s a good thing. If they start getting into regulating countries, then it would be bad. I think the Eurozone should break up, but the European Union is a good thing for trade and travel.

Cameron is a fraud, a liberal and a all round piece of dog crap. UKIP is the only way for the UK.

If you haven't seen this video, well worth a watch, this is how you deal with these EU liberal nazis, you stand up to them like Nigel Farage. We need a concerted effort on two fronts, here and in America, to get loud and stand up to these wannabe tyrants. Their agenda will destroy us all.

I would have hoped that the EDL would get some professionals in there and turn the corner from being a bunch of fringe rabble rousers to serious political competitors.

I keep telling them that they need to get serious. They can win politically... and majority seems to be with them, but they are rank amateurs and need to get some serious help from seasoned and successful political operatives and follow their advice.

Someone needs to get serious over there and take back the country from the pansies.

I think of the once greatness of the British Empire, and the good that the Empire has done for the world.

We all understand that Britain lost WW2 and that the shame of that has ruined a great culture. I mean that in a philosophical sense, where the psyche of the UK was mortally wounded having the US rescue them from the Nazi machine, and then subsequently they allowed the communists to complete the job started by the Nazi's. My father was visceral in his hatred of Labour, and the Fabian Socialists they enabled. He was always very proud of being an Englishman. He took great pride that the world of civilization that we understand as the "west" was a direct result of the sacrifices and accomplishments of the sons of the British Isles. He was quite angry about the idea that Brittan lost the war, and then took shame in the idea that the US bailed them out. Were it not for the sons and ideas of Brittan, the United States would never have been the power it was to rescue its progenitor. The pride my father took in going to the homes of his family in the UK in his US Army uniform was indescribable. Even to this day my family there still makes comments about it to me when I see them. All around the UK are monuments to the men who gave their lives and services into creating the world we enjoy. Amazing that there is no pride in that but that the communists and multi-culturalists have instilled shame claiming that the indigenous african culture(s) of the 1870's was equal in value to Britain of the 1870's. Include on that list, China, Japan, the aborigines in Australia, South America, India, and everywhere in the middle east. The British Empire was civilization when 99% of the world were little more than savages.

13
posted on 01/24/2013 3:45:47 PM PST
by Ouderkirk
(Obama has turned America into an aristocracy of the unaccomplished.)

I totally agree and honestly, it breaks my heart to see what has become of this country and I am only 25! However it is UKIP that is actually leading the fight back, and the fact Cameron was forced into this referendum is largely down to them. Leaving the EU will be a huge development for us and step in the right direction.

“We all understand that Britain lost WW2 and that the shame of that has ruined a great culture. I mean that in a philosophical sense, where the psyche of the UK was mortally wounded having the US rescue them from the Nazi machine,”

The above however is nonsense, and I can assure you British people do not see it that way at all, and we have enormous pride that we stood up to the Germans and were part of that victory so I’m not sure what would lead you to say such a thing. We are proud to have fought side by side with our American cousins and we certainly don’t see you as coming to our rescue even if the reality is different. World war 2 is one of our greatest triumphs we don’t see any shamee whatesoever.

British soldiers were among the toughest and most able in the war. However a decade of appeasement meant that the Armed Forces were completely unready when war broke out in 1939. The army was tiny (the CIGS, General Ironside, had only four divisions combat ready on September 3rd), equipment was obsolete, and the worst of all, the quality of the officers had declined.

Part of this was because WW1 had sapped the confidence and spirit of the officer class in the British Army - memories of Field Marshal Haig and the slaughter of the trenches made many feel either the army was an unworthy calling, or that the next war would only be more of the same. Consequently they became, with a few notable exceptions, conservative, unsure of themselves, and unimaginative.

So while the troops on the ground followed orders brilliantly and endured the worst the enemy could deal them and hardly ever broke, the generals were incapable of fighting a mobile, fast-thinking war with mobile reserves and deep penetrations in the same manner as the Germans. The British generals were still comfortable with overwhelming firepower and bludgeoning an enemy to death as the way to fight.

It was only after the war that the culture of the army changed for the better, and now the British Army is one of the best in quality of troops and leadership again.

"......the leaders, were basically former thugs and criminals, to me, they in their past lives have caused just as much trouble for this country."

This is the state that the US is in as well. If we send an honest broker to DC (TEA Party), they get "co-opted" by bribe of threat. I believe that organized corruption in both countries is a much bigger problem than the devastating rot of east European liberalism among the people. The two party system is a toy to play with for the cooks and enemies of the west who call all the shots. Divide and conquer.

Very easily, with great motives as the liberal disease always starts out with, our post war government gave birth to the ‘welfare state’ with the aim of looking after our war heroes........it grew out of control as it always does and it has expanded its disgusting tentacles and near enough ruined out country.

Also, a bigger loss in previous decades was the decline of our empire.

Not looking argue, but speaking as Brit, WW2 was our finest moment in terms of the outcome, and of course oddly a great tragedy at the same time for the lives lost.

It certainly is, and I struggle to see a way out of this. It is going to require a massive effort to overthrow that kind of closet tyranny.

In the UK, UKIP is often compared to the Tea Party, and I think a far more respectable force than the EDL.

I honestly can’t quantify just how much of a difference it would make for us to leave the EU. Between 50 and 75% of our laws are coming from the EU which is run by radical European socialists. It has been an absolute disaster and the immigration bomb a catastrophe on so so many levels.

I understand where you are coming from. And I think that you understand, as well, where I am coming from on this.

I see the greatest civilization the world has ever known self destructing and can only watch in horror as it does. I think back to the pride of my father and especially my grandparents of being English. I inherited that pride and want that once great civilization to once again be great. They were also loyal Americans who understood the bond of these two civilizations and understood that without Brittan, there would be no US.

In the absence of any other reasonable explanation why would this society would adopt the philosophy of its enemies.... from the Communists to the Muslims.

Ahhh...the empire. It truly was a sight to behold, was the greatest force for good the world has ever known. Keep saying that, because it is TRUE !!! No other force for good has ever existed, before or since.

Think of where the “Union Jack” flew versus where “Bandera de España” flew. Which places have fared better since.

20
posted on 01/25/2013 3:35:15 PM PST
by Ouderkirk
(Obama has turned America into an aristocracy of the unaccomplished.)

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